Mom Wants Her Husband To Stop Berating Their Daughter For Her Choice Of College Degree — 'He's Worried She Won't Be Able To Support Herself'
His response to her choice shows the divide between scientific and creative fields.
michaeljung / Shutterstock In our society, there is a silent understanding that some college degrees are more prestigious than others. Typically, careers related to STEM are applauded, while more creative options are looked down upon.
One family lived this reality when a father wouldn’t accept his daughter’s degree.
A mom is fed up with her husband putting down her daughter’s college degree choice.
One mom who is sick of hearing her husband complain about what their daughter is getting a degree in sought advice on Reddit.
“My husband and I have two young adult daughters (20 and 18 years old),” she explained. “The eldest is graduating after three years in June from a college that’s routinely listed in the top 25% of prestigious schools.”
While this mom is proud of her daughter, her husband doesn’t feel quite the same way.
“She will graduate with a degree related to community planning,” she said. “The fact that this degree is not science related, nor does it create a linear career path, has my husband worried about what comes next for her.”
While her husband at least tries to be respectful around their daughter, he does no such thing when talking with his wife about the degree.
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“He’s constantly berating her choice to me with relentless predictions that she won’t be able to support herself financially,” she stated. “He says she’s not going to be a productive member of society and will wind up in the service industry. He’s less confrontational with her, but he makes his disappointment clear with sarcastic comments.”
This wife, for one, is tired of her husband’s commentary on their daughter’s degree, especially since it doesn’t fit their family’s history.
“I am losing my patience with this conversation and his behavior,” she said. “She’s 20 years old and she’s going to have years to find her way. For the record, I am a college dropout who worked my way into an executive position with a great company. And my husband has an engineering degree, although he spent many years as the primary caretaker for our daughters.”
Everything that is assumed about STEM degrees may not be true.
Forbes acknowledged that STEM majors typically earned a higher starting salary than humanities majors. However, there are multiple things to take into consideration.
For example, Forbes stated that much is dependent on the career one pursues. They said, “To take an example in the field of English literature, 6.4% of graduates who enter the field of law earn a median salary of over $100,000, whereas the 8.3% of graduates who enter the field of early childhood education earn $50,000.”
Additionally, it is almost impossible to figure out where someone will end up, in terms of career or finances, based solely on their college degree since there are so many options open to them.
Forbes said, “Given that students’ post-college career paths are so difficult to predict based on their academic concentrations, it could be argued that looking at earnings by occupations or career track is perhaps more indicative than college major alone.”
While majoring in STEM is an excellent option, and often opens up many lucrative opportunities, it’s not for everyone. There are many people who are more interested in the humanities and other creative fields who would not thrive in a STEM environment, in college or on the job.
Society could not function with only one category of thinkers, or graduates. Each group should be equally respected and revered for what they bring to the table. In a world that becomes increasingly more divided each day, it’s important to recognize others for their contributions, despite any perceived differences.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer for YourTango who covers entertainment, news and human interest topics.